Hyperoptic to roll out gigabit broadband to all Salford Council housing

Fibre ISP Hyperoptic has inked a deal with Salford Council which will see all social housing residents able to sign up for gigabit broadband. 

Much like the deal with Hyde Group housing in south London, the scheme will see customers able to access a communal 100Mbps service for free alongside Hyperoptic’s standard line up of up to 20Mbps, 100Mbps and 1Gbps bundles. 

Hyperoptic engineers are currently hard at work installing connection in Beech Court, Salix Court, Thorn Court, Spruce Court, Holm and Plane Court, Whitebeam, Hornbeam and Malus Court. All buildings in Salford Council’s housing portfolio will be connected by the summer, with thousands of customers able to access the fastest download speeds in the UK. 

Dana Tobak, Hyperoptic’s managing director, said: “We offer a compelling and innovative alternative for council’s that want to future proof their buildings with broadband infrastructure that will stand the test of time.

“Gigabit connectivity enables limitless opportunities – it supports and exceeds the government’s digital by default initiative. The UK is fast becoming a gigabit nation – we have pioneered this shift and we are delighted that Salford Council has taken the leap to become the first council to offer its residents world-class connectivity.“

The Hyperoptic deal supports the local authority’s Digital Champions campaign, which aims to get more people online to close what analysts Point-Topic have termed the digital deprivation gap; where skills and cost as as much of a barrier to people getting on line as availability of next-gen broadband services. 

Salford’s campaign will involve volunteers training neighbours on how to get online and make use of basic services. In a similar fashion to Hyperoptic’s own Champion scheme, volunteers who successfully train over 20 residents a year will get their own broadband paid for. 

Hyperoptic’s services start at £24/month not including a phone service and £11/month plus £16/month for line rental, for a total of £27/month. We’ve broken down prices for all of Hyperoptic’s packages here. 

To get a better idea of how fast 1Gbps is compared to your current service, check out our broadband speed test tool.